Randomness

I found some pictures that my kids took that I haven't shared on here.  Just a small sampling of how quickly they are growing up!

Lyndsey in our front yard!

Bryce in our front yard!

Daddy and P at the San Diego Zoo!

Lynds, Graham, and my nephews at the San Diego Zoo!

San Diego shoreline

I will soon have some pictures to share from Bryce's trip to Europe.  She is having a fantastic time.  She spent three days in Paris, now she is at our friend's home in Lyon, and soon she will be traveling to London, and Chamonix.  What an amazing opportunity this is for her!

Tonight is our second beans and rice night!  It is Anasazi beans tonight (I just buy whatever they have each week at the Farmer's Market).  They smell delicious, and no one is complaining (yet).  

We decided to start trying to strictly budget our spending.  The hope is that we have more money available to us to give away and to travel with.  We have never been very good at budgeting, so I decided that the best way to do it is to have a cash envelope for the month.  That way the kids can easily see that when it is gone, it is gone.  Stan pays the bills, but from our cash we buy groceries, gas, and extras.  It went pretty well this month, but we don't have a whole lot leftover.  I think that is because "someone" (names omitted to protect the guilty) was heading to Europe and needed a few new things to take on the trip!  :)  Seriously, the important thing is that we didn't spend anything we didn't have in the envelope - so that is a SCORE!!  We are plotting how we can do even better next month.  I love it when the kids get involved and try to plan out how we can save even more.  I also love it when they start to show generosity to their siblings - like Graham did last night when he bought a Rita's ice for Lyndsey and himself with his Christmas money so we didn't have to use the "budget money."

Anyway, overall, life is good around here.  Everyone has stayed pretty healthy, with Mom and Dad being the only ones with a bout of nasty coughing.  We are working hard at school to finish our check list before our summer travels.  We are very excited to be heading back to Naples in a couple of months, visiting friends in Texas on the way and then on to North Carolina for vacation with my family.  On our way home we will travel through Tennessee to visit friends, Alabama to visit family, and see some of the canyons north of us in New Mexico and Arizona before we arrive back in Phoenix.  I'm tired just thinking about it, but very thankful that I have two extra drivers now to make things a lot easier on Mom.

 It is very hard to believe that we are coming up on the end of another school year.  Next year will bring HUGE changes in our lives with two in college.  Honestly, it is so bittersweet.  I just wish I could keep all of my little birds in the nest, but I know that is not realistic.  I am counting my blessings that they will be close enough to visit often.  Home schooling my children their entire lives has left us with NO regrets.  I have loved every second of our journey (even the seconds that were not so enjoyable).  Looking back, I would have it NO other way.  Now, I can let them go, knowing that I have done the best I can (with many, many mistakes along the way) and knowing that we have spent so much time together.  They are ready, they love the Lord, they desire to follow Him where ever He leads and that makes me very happy, but I'm not sure that Moms are ever really ready to let go.  My prayer is that no matter where He leads, and no matter how much it wrenches my heart, that they follow fearlessly.

Well, that is all of our random news.  Happy Tuesday!